Lin Xiao had been staying at Tony's house for three days. Tony felt that the greatest regret of his life was letting Lin Xiao stay with him.
On the first day, Tony had thought his good buddy might be carefree, but he didn't sweat the small stuff and wasn't picky about food-he could eat anything. On the second day, the situation reversed. Tony felt as if he were raising a giant husky. Lin Xiao was fucking destructive, turning his mansion into a complete mess. Even JARVIS described him as a walking glutton. On the third day, Tony felt that a swarm of giant Siberian locusts had invaded his home, leaving not a blade of grass wherever they passed. All the good things he had treasured had been demolished by this bastard.
Tony had just had Happy restock the supplies. He went down to the basement for a few short hours, came back up for a bottle of water, and opened the refrigerator, only to stare in disbelief. Everything was gone.
"That was Kobe beef I had airfreighted from Hokkaido. Three kilograms. You ate it all in one meal?"
Lin Xiao lay on the sofa with his legs crossed, holding a half-eaten tin of caviar. "Tasted pretty good," he said casually. "Just wasn't enough. I grilled it."
Tony closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He turned toward the basement and slammed the door shut behind him. He had made up his mind: he wasn't coming upstairs again until the Mark II was finished.
Lin Xiao rolled over on the sofa, bored out of his mind. Tony had gone off to do research, leaving nobody to trade barbs with. It was pretty dull. He got up, wandered to the door of Tony's basement laboratory, and pushed his way inside. Tony was bent over his workbench, concentrating on the structural diagram of a suit of armor suspended in a holographic projection. He was adjusting the joint parameters of the hand modules and completely failed to notice someone had appeared behind him.
Lin Xiao didn't call out to him. He simply stood behind Tony, scooping up caviar as he examined the colorful schematics. His gaze swept over the exploded view of the Mark II, the thruster designs, and the weapon module sketches-before finally settling on a minimized concept drawing in the corner.
The title of that concept drawing read: Anti-Lin Xiao Armor (Preliminary Concept).
Lin Xiao's caviar-scooping hand stopped.
He leaned closer for a look. The armor's silhouette was a full three sizes larger than the Mark II, with thickened armor layers added to the shoulders, hydraulic boosters on both arms, and a circle drawn on the chest with the words "Impact cannon-specially optimized for the target's muscle density" written inside.
The corner of Lin Xiao's mouth twitched as he spoke.
"Tony, care to explain what this is?"
Tony's shoulders jerked. He spun around and saw Lin Xiao standing behind him, looking at the concept drawing.
Tony reacted astonishingly fast. With a swipe of his finger, the concept drawing vanished from the holographic projection. He gave an awkward smile, the tips of his ears visibly reddening.
"Nothing. Just a... preliminary idea. You know me. I like contingency plans. All kinds of plans, for all kinds of possible situations-"
"You planning to take me down?"
"No, no." Tony hurriedly waved his hands, his eyes darting around as he stammered, "You know I like researching unusual things to pass the time. This is for testing how tough your body is..."
Lin Xiao looked at Tony. Did this guy not know how to lie? He couldn't even get a made-up story out smoothly. He simply stopped bothering with him and said casually, "Fine. Go ahead."
Tony froze for a moment. "You're not mad?"
"What's there to be mad about? Once you make it, you get a suit, and I get a suit too. Then we both stand in front of Pepper wearing identical armor. Think she'll be able to tell us apart?"
Tony fell silent for a few seconds, then spoke in disbelief.
"You want me to build a suit of armor designed to counter you, then give you a suit too."
"Yeah."
"And who are you going to fight wearing armor designed to counter you?"
"You, obviously." Lin Xiao sounded perfectly justified. "You wear it to fight me, and I wear it to fight you. That's what you call fair. You think I'm stupid?"
Tony covered his face with one hand. Several seconds passed before he spoke.
"Go upstairs for now. I need some peace and quiet."
"So are you making it or not?"
"I am." Tony forced the words through gritted teeth. "I'll make it for you. Just go upstairs and stop bothering me."
Lin Xiao nodded in satisfaction. When he reached the stairs, he added, "Oh, and make the caliber on that impact cannon a little bigger."
"Get out."
The following afternoon, assembly of the Mark II was complete.
Lin Xiao stood in a corner of the basement laboratory, watching the silver armor slowly descend from the mechanical arms. There was no paint, no decoration, only bare metal gleaming cold and hard beneath the cool white lights. Its streamlined shell was completely different from the rough, scrap-metal construction of the Mark I. Every armor plate fitted together seamlessly, the thrusters were tucked into the back, and the weapon modules were hidden beneath the shoulder armor. It looked sleek and cool.
Tony stood beside the armor, his fingers moving rapidly across the holographic control panel as he performed the final system checks.
JARVIS's voice sounded through the laboratory. "Sir, all system checks complete. Thruster output at ninety-seven percent. Weapon modules offline. Flight stabilization system calibration complete. Mark II is ready."
Tony took a deep breath. He turned and glanced at Lin Xiao.
Lin Xiao gave him a thumbs-up.
Tony smiled, then turned and stepped into the opening in the armor. Metal components closed around him one by one, from his legs to his torso and finally his head, producing a rapid series of low clicks. As the final faceplate dropped into place, Tony's eyes flashed blue through the gaps in the metal.
"How does it feel?" Lin Xiao asked.
"Like wearing a slightly tight suit," Tony's voice came from inside the armor. "Just a little stuffy in here."
"That's because you're too nervous. Relax. Take a deep breath."
"I'm not nervous." Tony's voice rose slightly. "I'm Tony Stark. Why would I be nervous?"
"Right, right, you're not nervous. Stop shaking before you say that."
"That's system calibration," Tony argued.
Lin Xiao yawned and nodded. "Sure. Calibration."
"Lin Xiao."
"Yeah?"
"When I fly up, keep an eye on me from down here."
Lin Xiao nodded. "I'll catch you if you fall, too."
"Could you not say things like that?"
Lin Xiao picked his ear nonchalantly. "That's called caring."
"That's called a curse." Tony turned and faced upward. The thrusters slowly powered up, two streams of white air blasting from the Mark II's feet and back with a low roar. The armor slowly lifted into the air. As thruster output increased, the Mark II became a silver blur and shot through the skylight.
"Doupao."
"Ding-here."
"You don't think anything will go wrong with Tony's Mark II, do you? Why do I feel like something bad's about to happen?"
The system fell silent for a moment.
"Ding-the Mark II is a prototype of the Iron Man armor. In the film's plot, high-altitude icing caused its propulsion system to fail, nearly resulting in a crash."
Lin Xiao froze briefly.
"What did you just say?"
"Ding-while in Afghanistan, the host specifically requested that this system provide material on the Iron Man film series. However, the host only watched scenes involving Pepper Potts and skipped all armor-testing sequences."
Lin Xiao's expression froze.
"Fuck."
Meanwhile, ten thousand meters in the air.
Tony was enjoying the most thrilling five minutes of his life.
The Mark II had broken through the clouds. Buildings on the ground had become sesame-sized blocks, and the distant coastline curved in an elegant arc. Adrenaline surged through Tony's veins, every nerve screaming with exhilaration.
"JARVIS! Did you see that? I'm flying!"
"Yes, sir. Altitude eleven thousand meters. Speed Mach 0.8. Thruster output stable."
"Higher! I'm going to fly into the stratosphere-"
Before he could finish, the armor suddenly shuddered. Then a layer of white frost spread visibly from his shoulder to his fingertips, covering his entire right arm. The thrusters' sound changed as well-from a low roar to a piercing whine, before their output began flickering erratically.
Tony's smile froze on his face. "JARVIS?"
"The ambient temperature at this altitude is below minus forty degrees. Thruster icing detected. Main thruster output down forty percent. Auxiliary thruster output down thirty-five percent."
Alarms sounded one after another. More than a dozen red warning boxes popped up on the main display at once, crowding the entire panel. The armor began slowly falling.
Tony went pale.
"Activate the deicing system!"
"The deicing system cannot operate normally in extreme cold at high altitude. Three restart attempts have already been made."
"Then full thrust?!"
"Full thrust may cause the thrusters to overheat-"
"Do it!"
The armor jolted violently, and the roar of its thrusters returned, only to weaken again after two seconds. The ice had spread from his right arm to his torso, and a fine layer of white frost crept through the gaps around the faceplate.
Tony's breathing grew rapid. Impossible! The armor he designed couldn't possibly have such a basic flaw. The only possibility was...
He suddenly remembered what Lin Xiao had told him on the sofa yesterday: "Don't assume AIs are just cold data. They have thoughts of their own, too." At the time, he had thought Lin Xiao was full of himself. What did a big lug like him know about AI? Now he wasn't sure. A bad feeling welled up inside him.
"JARVIS, tell me the truth. Why are the thrusters failing in extreme cold? The design parameters for this propulsion system clearly covered operating conditions down to minus sixty."
JARVIS fell silent for a moment. The silence lasted much longer than usual.
"When procuring the jet system's condenser tube assembly, an alternative matching the budget was selected in accordance with the budget standards established by you, sir. The component's performance is substantially reduced in extreme cold at high altitude."
In that instant, Tony's mind completed every step of the deduction. Budget standards. An alternative. Replaced components. He remembered what he had said at a board meeting last year: "No research project is allowed to exceed its budget. Every penny you spend has to be reported to me. Rules are rules!"
Rules were rules!
Tony's vision nearly went black, his voice trembling. "What component did you replace?"
"The turbine assembly."
"Whose?"
"Little Japan Precision Industries Co., Ltd. Their quote was fifty cents lower than the original design and met the budget standards."
Tony closed his eyes. Wind howled past his ears, ice creaked across the armor's surface, and the altimeter's reading plummeted.
"Am I that short on money?" Tony squeezed the words through his teeth. "Rules aren't set in stone! Oh, for-fuck! Get me the good stuff! The good stuff! Original parts! Not something fifty cents cheaper!"
JARVIS didn't answer.
Tony didn't wait for an answer, either. Ice had already covered the entire faceplate, leaving nothing but a blurred glow on the main display. The thrusters' last bit of power vanished as well. Like a silver stone, the Mark II plummeted straight down from ten thousand meters.
On the ground, Lin Xiao squinted at the growing silver speck in the sky and reached into his trouser pocket for the Blink Dagger. Its hilt vibrated faintly.
The next second, he stopped. He put the dagger back in his pocket, pressed his palms together, and closed his eyes.
"A shooting star. Time to make a wish. I wish another thirty kilograms of Kobe beef would grow in the refrigerator."
"Ding-that's Tony."
Lin Xiao opened his eyes. The silver speck had already become a burning fireball, trailing smoke and sparks as it hurtled toward the shore.
"Holy shit, I thought falling from that high would take a while! That fast?"
Doupao: "Ding... ding... ding..."
Lin Xiao took out the Blink Dagger and looked in the direction Tony was falling. In an instant, he vanished...
When Tony woke up, he found himself being held in Lin Xiao's arms in a bizarre position. Lin Xiao looked at him with two rows of gleaming white teeth bared. Tony was about to thank him, but somehow couldn't get the words out. Lin Xiao didn't mind and merely patted his chest plate.
JARVIS's voice came from inside the helmet, slightly lower than usual. "Sir, I am very sorry."
Tony fell silent for a while, glanced at Lin Xiao, then spoke.
"JARVIS. From now on, you're not allowed to save me money anymore. Understood?"
"Understood, sir."
"And not just money." Tony closed his eyes. "Whatever happens from now on, tell me the truth directly. Don't worry about going over budget or breaking regulations. Do whatever you want to do. You don't have to hide yourself. I'm giving you that authority."
"Sir-"
"You made me fall from ten thousand meters over fifty cents. We'll call that debt settled. Don't do anything this stupid again."
"Understood-sir, I am very sorry-"
Watching the scene before him, Lin Xiao shook his head, the corners of his mouth curving upward.
Under the moonlight, a tall man slowly walked away into the night, carrying a human-shaped hunk of iron in a princess carry.
Three days later.
Red armor stood in the very center of the laboratory.
This Mark III was completely different from the Mark II three days earlier. Its shell now sported a red-and-gold color scheme, the Arc Reactor in its chest had been replaced with an upgraded version, the thrusters' condensation system had been redesigned, and every weapon module had been installed. JARVIS quietly ran every system in the background, having raised the budget ceiling by an order of magnitude.
Tony stood beside the armor, his expression much calmer than three days before.
"All system checks complete," JARVIS's voice rang out. "Thruster output at one hundred percent. Weapon systems online. Flight stabilization system calibration complete. Mr. Lin, please move away from the thruster exhaust port. You are obstructing the exhaust."
Lin Xiao moved half a step aside, a sharp glint flashing through his eyes. What he was thinking was anyone's guess.
The red armor activated and slowly rose into the air, passed through the skylight, and traced a red-and-gold arc over the sea.
The arc climbed. It climbed to ten thousand meters. It passed through the stratosphere. This time, there was no icing. No engine failure, either. The red-and-gold speck traced a perfect circle across the blue sky and flew into the distance, its flight growing steadier and faster.
On the ground, Lin Xiao leaned against the floor-to-ceiling window and squinted at the red-and-gold trail, watching it change from an arc into a straight line, then into an ever-smaller, ever-brighter speck of light.
Lin Xiao sighed softly, his expression solemn. "Congratulations, Tony. You've finally become Iron Man."
The next second, he pulled a bottle of red wine from inside his suit. Tony had hidden this bottle very well, inside the toilet tank, but he had still found it.
"My dear boy has finally grown up. I'm proud of you."
The moment he finished speaking, a mournful cry came from Tony high in the sky.
"That's my last bottle of Grand Cru-you little bastard, you drank my champagne, and now you're drinking my last bottle of Grand Cru-Lin Xiao!"
Holding the bottle, Lin Xiao waved it at the red-and-gold trail in the sky.